Downtown fishermen: Fishing along the Concho River downtown will be limited to two poles per angler starting Sept. 1, 2014

photos by Jennifer Rios/Standard-Times Willie Gonzales, 82, baits his fishing hook Tuesday morning as Texas Parks & Wildlife released rainbow trout into the Concho River. Gonzales’ grandson Justin Martinez joined him after a class at Angelo State University.

AUSTIN — Expansion into the Texas coastal bend of special harvest regulations on spotted sea trout, and harvest modifications to the state's only year-round freshwater trout fishery have been approved by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission.

As part of the 2014-15 Statewide Recreational and Commercial Fishing Proclamation, the Commission adopted rules to extend a 5-fish bag limit currently in effect in the Lower Laguna Madre up the coast through the Highway 457 bridge near Sargent with a five-year sunset date.

The Commission modified the original proposal to set the possession limit on spotted sea trout for the area from the Lower Laguna Madre to the Highway 457 bridge twice the daily bag limit (10 fish in possession).

The Commission also approved a temporary 2-year closure of oyster harvest at a 54-acre oyster restoration site on Half-Moon Reef in Matagorda Bay, and a 2-year temporary closure of seven restoration sites in East Galveston Bay.

In other changes to saltwater fishing regulations, the Commission extended the two flounder per day bag limit restrictions currently in effect for the month of November into the first two weeks of December. During these first two weeks of December, however, harvest would be allowed by any legal means.

For freshwater, the Commission approved changes to the rainbow and brown trout fishery along a section of the Guadalupe River below Canyon Reservoir establishing a 12- to 18-inch slot length limit with a five-fish daily bag limit, harvest by artificial lures only, and only one trout over 18 inches could be retained. The new regulation zone would begin 800 yards downstream from the Canyon Dam release and extend downstream to the easternmost Highway 306 bridge crossing.

The Commission also granted authority for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department's Executive Director to impose temporary prohibition of alligator gar fishing in specified areas to provide additional protection during spawning activity. Closures would be invoked in a selected area, limited to no more than 30 days, and occur only in areas having an active moderate flood event with water temperatures within an optimum range for alligator gar spawning.

In other freshwater fishing regulation changes, the Commission adopted the following:

* Texas/Louisiana Border Waters (Toledo Bend Reservoir, Caddo Lake, and the Lower Sabine River in Newton and Orange Counties): regulations for blue and channel catfish changed to no minimum length limit and a 50-fish daily bag limit in any combination, of which no more than five blue or channel catfish 30 inches or longer could be retained.

* Tradinghouse Creek Reservoir: the special limits for freshwater lakes where red drum have been stocked are removed and regulations revert to statewide length limits (20-inch minimum length limit, 28-inch maximum length limit, and harvest of up to two red drum 28 inches or longer per year with trophy drum tag). Bag limit remains at three.